Consumers have the flexibility to purchase electronic devices in the comfort of their homes by logging on to any one of hundreds of online retailers, selecting an electronic device, and providing payment information, such as a credit card number, to the retailer to purchase the electronic device. For those who prefer to see and hold the electronic device or who do not have access to online retailers, the option of visiting a store to purchase the electronic device is typically available. In either instance, the consumer eventually receives the electronic device and is typically asked to register with a manufacturer of the device. The registration process usually requires the purchaser to complete and mail back to the manufacturer a postcard that includes registration information, e.g., the purchaser's name and address, and the device's serial number and model number. Alternatively, the purchaser can log on to a registration webpage provided by the manufacturer and provide the registration information.
For manufacturers and purchasers, device registration is an important and useful process. By registering the device, the purchaser can receive from the manufacturer upgrades, recall notices, safety warnings, and other pertinent information related to the device. In addition, if the purchaser has questions regarding the device, the manufacturer can quickly determine the make and model of the device and provide prompt customer support. The manufacturer can easily determine whether a defective device is under warranty based on the registration information and also can develop cross-selling strategies to increase its sales revenue.
Nevertheless, for a number of reasons, purchasers frequently do not take the time to register their devices with manufacturers. For instance, some purchasers are reluctant to provide personal information for fear that the information will be misappropriated, e.g., sold to third party vendors. Some purchasers are simply too busy to register. As a result, the manufacturer cannot track the device to the purchaser and cannot provide beneficial information and services to the purchaser, and the purchaser cannot receive upgrades and information related to the device. In many cases, warranties on the devices are not activated.
Several processes have been implemented to try to improve the rate of device registration. Some processes focus on device registration at the point-of-sale, e.g., the store, when the device is purchased. For example, some manufacturers provide barcodes on each electronic device that identify the make/model and serial number of the device so that an employee of the retail store can scan the barcodes when the device is purchased and send the registration information to the manufacturer. These processes, however, can be cumbersome and time-consuming because the employee is required to locate the barcodes, which are often on the device itself inside of packaging. In this case, the employee must remove the device from its packaging before he or she can scan the barcodes.
Moreover, these processes are not generally feasible for online retailers, particularly for those retailers who serve as general distributors or clearinghouses for several other retailers. In this instance, the online retailer typically facilitates the online transaction, and then hours, or more commonly, days later, the device is delivered from a warehouse to the purchaser. The online retailer does not have physical access to the device purchased, and therefore collecting the registration information at the point-of-sale is virtually impossible.